The state is working with the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office to develop a blueprint for establishing medication-assisted opioid treatment programs inside Maine county jails. Read More
Supporters and opponents of Central Maine Power Co.’s proposed $1 billion transmission line have combined to spend at least $1.8 million on TV, Facebook and radio advertising since late last year. Read More
The two-term former Republican governor is tending bar at McSeagulls Restaurant in Boothbay Harbor this summer. Read More
The Bangor Daily News analyzed the money at stake to see who would benefit and who would lose if the line is completed, and what’s in it for the people of Maine. Read More
“I am not normally one to get all political as I hate the state of politics and how hateful everyone seems to have become,” said the main organizer of the fundraiser. But in this case, “I am so deeply disgusted with Governor LePage.” Read More
Documenting the opioid crisis
Chipping away at the stigma that blocks too many people addicted to drugs and their loved ones from seeking recovery options emerged as the priority Wednesday in a gathering that included three candidates for governor. Read More
A look at preventing one of the largest public health problems of this time. Read More
Being incarcerated before a trial means defendants have a harder time reaching their attorneys, are cut off from the support of their family, can’t continue working to support their defense and can’t take steps to rehabilitate themselves in the eyes of the court, making it more likely that they will plead guilty. Read More
Instead, some counties have taken it upon themselves to develop electronic monitoring programs, scattering the effort and creating different approaches across the state. In addition, jail populations have remained stubbornly high, not because of an increase in sentenced prisoners but because of an increase in prisoners unable to bail out before their trial. Read More
The contracts that would govern power sold over the completed transmission line “undermine the original intent and purpose” of the project to bring new amounts of clean, renewable power into New England, the Massachusetts attorney general and environmental groups said. Hydro-Quebec, which would sell electricity over the line, called the idea “illogical.” Read More
How 1 Mainer was jailed for sleeping in the wrong place, while another accused of murder walked free
Research shows that requiring cash to bail out of jail is no more effective than just releasing people with no financial requirement, and it fundamentally disadvantages those of lesser means. Meanwhile, the number of people unable to bail out has reached unprecedented heights in Maine. Read More
That finding could influence discussions about the prospects of youth in Maine, which has seen its number of working-age people steadily decline. Read More
The growth of Maine's jail population has been driven not by an increase in people serving sentences for crimes but an increase in the number of prisoners like this woman who are being held prior to their conviction. Read More
The discussions that have ensued around the decline show just how much there is still to learn. Read More
The initiatives include a new mental health court, medication-assisted treatment for addiction and revising bail policies. Read More
This is an email that was sent to faculty at Thomas College in response to the Bangor Daily News' reporting about the school’s handling of several sexual misconduct cases. Read More
At least one professor at the Waterville college bristled at the idea of the school appearing to restrict discussion. Read More
“It all goes back to the social determinants of health, which is really where the prevention work will happen. If you don’t address trauma and health and housing and all of those things, we’re going to continue to be where we are or worse in the years to come,” said Patty Hamilton, director of Bangor's public health department. Read More
Central Maine Power ranked dead last among 85 utilities for business customer satisfaction last year, at the same time that its net income increased 88 percent over 2007 levels. The Bangor Daily News reviewed hundreds of pages of documents, and interviewed current and former employees, regulators and customers to understand the specific decisions that led the company to this point. Read More
One student secretly recorded her conversation with an administrator who shared various avenues for dealing with the case in such confusing terms — even describing the process as “vague” and “gray” — that the student said she felt like she was “being thrown in circles.” Read More
Four current female students described experiencing unwanted sexual contact and were surprised when administrators didn’t take initiative to investigate their complaints, instead leaving it up to the women to decide how to proceed. Read More
CBS News has produced an online documentary about sex education and consent that features the University of Maine at Farmington’s ongoing conversation about sexual assault. Read More
